Tag Archives: Financial stability

SRF, Tagesgespräch, June 16, 2016. HTML with link to MP3. Half-hour-long interview on the Swiss news channel. Topics include monetary policy, exchange rates, financial stability, Brexit.

In the FT, Jim Brunsden reports that the European Commission’s 2013 proposal to install a financial transaction tax has not made much progress. At least nine countries have to sign up. The report highlights that key differences remain on how to craft exemptions from the tax, including the problem of how to shield transactions in other non-participating EU countries such as Britain. Other splits concern how to protect market-making activities by banks, and also what carveouts should apply...

In his blog, John Cochrane points to SoFi, a FinTech company, as proof that banking services can be delivered by institutions without the traditional characteristics of a bank. SoFi finances loans by selling equity. The loans are securitized and the cash is reinvested in loans. As John points out: A “bank” (in the economic, not legal sense) can finance loans, raising money essentially all from equity and no conventional debt. And it can offer competitive borrowing rates — the supposedly...